Of Partners, Promises, and Poison Darts
by SabbyStarlight
Summary: Mac remained staring straight ahead, into the quickly darkening sunset sky. "I need you to not freak out, okay?" He asked finally. "Cause I am, just a little, and at least one of us has to keep it together."


**Oh don't mind me, I'm just over here pretending like the show hasn't gone completely to hell and ignoring all things canon with yet another 'Mac gets hurt and not only is Jack still here, but he's a skilled agent whose main priority is to take care of his kid' fic. Because their relationship is what made me fall in love with the show to begin with and now it's up to us writers and fans to keep that relationship alive. (Also seeing Mac driving so much now that Jack's no longer in the picture really hurts and left me longing for a car-centric fic. So this was born.) As usual, there was a very, very, small amount of research that went into this and I am in no way a medical professional so I'm sure it's not accurate and hope you enjoy anyway. **

"Remind me to thank Matty for getting us a halfway decent getaway car this time!" Jack called over his shoulder as he broke through the dense treeline in a jog and saw the sleek black SUV waiting to take them to safety.

"This is literally the exact same car we've had on the last four US missions." Mac pointed out from a few feet behind him. "And now you're suddenly a fan?"

"Dude," Jack began as he leaned against the driver's side door to catch his breath. "We've been chasin' some cheap wannabe assassin through the woods for the past ten hours." He pulled a keyring from his pants pocket and pressed the button on the key fob to unlock the doors with a smile. "I'm allowed to be thankful for modern conveniences."

Mac opened his own door and climbed into the passenger seat, only his slightly labored breathing filling the quiet car as Jack climbed in beside him. "You slacking off on the cardio, pal?" Jack asked with a teasing grin as he fastened his seat belt. "I wasn't even trying to outrun you and I still kicked your scrawny ass."

"Shut up." Mac rolled his eyes. "Just start the car, that your suddenly so fond of, modern conveniences and all, and let's get out of here before he catches up with us." He paused for a beat, carefully weighing his next words. "Maybe if you drove a car from this century you wouldn't be so in awe of how modern vehicles work." A classic MacGyver deflection that Jack would kick himself later for not catching.

"Don't diss the Shelby, Mac." Jack practically hissed. "After how many years and you still ain't learned that lesson? That car is a classic, man. She's a goddess..."

"I'm sorry." Mac interrupted his partner's offended rant. "Just, get us out of here, okay?"

"You got it." Jack agreed, pulling onto the empty two-lane road. "This gig sucked, huh? Surveillance missions are supposed to be about relaxing! Not this, runnin' through the woods being chased by Mr. Crazypants cause Matty needed us to traipse around and take pictures of his top-secret hideout. You got the pictures, right? Cause I ain't goin' back."

"Already sent them to Ri," Mac assured. "Should be all the proof Matty's contact in the CIA needs for an arrest."

"All that work and we're not even the ones who get to bring the dirtbag in." Jack shook his head. "That's not even close to fair."

Mac didn't respond, just stared out the windshield at the twisting road in front of them.

"But of course my partner who doesn't like any form of conflict is fine with reconnaissance missions," Jack teased, all hard feelings about Mac's diss to his beloved car forgotten. "Even ones that involve running for our lives through miles of stupid trees."

Jack took his eyes away from the road for a second to check on his partner who was still sitting quietly beside him. He had seemed alright while they were making their way back to their car, running fine even if it had been a little slower than his usual. "Hey, speakin' of conflicts and trees," he said, noticing a small splash of dried blood on Mac's neck. "Looks like one got in a pretty good hit. You know you're supposed to duck around the branches, right?"

Mac slapped a hand over the wound a little too quickly and Jack's instincts went on high alert. "Are you hurt? I mean, that looks like maybe just a scrape but, somewhere else?"

Mac sighed, defeated. As soon as Jack met his eyes he knew he was right, something was up. He pulled their car over to the side of the road with a jerk, tires sending gravel arcing behind them. "Where and how bad?" He growled as he slammed into park, reminding himself to keep his temper in check.

Mac remained staring straight ahead, into the quickly darkening sunset sky. "I need you to not freak out, okay?" He asked finally. "Cause I am, just a little, and at least one of us has to keep it together."

"Okay, you're officially scaring me, dude. Nowhere in history has telling someone not to freak out made them freak out any less." Jack said, turning fully in his seat to get a better view of the younger man beside him. "What the hell is going on?"

Instead of an answer, Mac reached inside the pocket of his coat, long fingers finding and closing around something before reaching it out to Jack as an explanation.

Jack stared at the dart in his hand, stomach sinking. The needle, small by medical standards but definitely big enough, shone ominously in the dim light coming from the car's overhead light. There was a single blue feather at the other end and a vial, now empty, its contents currently flowing through his partner, in between.

"Please tell me this is some kinda tranq dart," Jack said, closing his eyes though he knew the image of that dart was now permanently etched into his ever-growing bank of nightmare fuel. "Some kind of defective, seeing as how your still awake, tranq dart."

Mac shook his head no. "I was holding off on mentioning it, I'd hoped I got it out in time but…" Scared blue eyes, ironically almost the exact shade of blue as the feather in Jack's hand, met his. "Tranquilizers would have knocked me out cold before we made it out of the woods."

Jack swallowed hard, carefully setting the dart in one of the empty cup holders on the middle console. "So poison?" He asked, though he already knew the answer. "Any clue what we're dealing with?"

"No, not yet," Mac said with a sigh, dropping his head back into the leather seat with a thump. "I mean, I'll probably be able to figure it out, or at least get close, once symptoms start progressing but until then I got nothing."

"You ain't got nothin'," Jack corrected, simultaneously putting the car in drive and peeling back onto the road and pulling out his cell phone. "You got me."

He quickly dialed a few numbers and hit the speaker button as an echoing ringing rang out through the vehicle's cab. "Hey, guys." Riley's cheerful voice answered after a few seconds. "Great job on the pics, Matty already has a tea…"

"Not important right now, Ri." Jack cut her off. "I need coordinates to the nearest hospital. Now."

"What's wrong? Are you okay?" She asked over the sound of keyboard keys clicking away.

"I'm fine, Mac's not. Coordinates?" He asked, steering through a curve in the road one-handed.

"Sent them to your phone." She assured. "Now will you tell me what's going on?"

Mac could hear the panic building in her voice. "I'm okay, Riles." He assured, ignoring the glare Jack sent his way.

"No. He's not." Jack interrupted. "Is Matty there?"

"No, she's get…"

"I didn't ask where she was, now did I? Go find her, now. I don't care what she's doing, this is more important and you can tell her I said so. I'm not explainin' it more than once, call me back when you find her." Jack ordered, ending the call and immediately bringing up the directions Riley had sent.

"Dude you just scared her half to death." Mac admonished. "She's never witnessed you going full on Delta Dalton, especially not at her."

Jack knew Mac was right but couldn't quite find it in himself to care. "I hear you, and I'll fix it later, okay? But I've got this new parenting technique, one kid at a time. 'Least when one of those kids gets shot full of poison and were a good half hour away from the closest hospital."

"Half an hour?" Mac asked. "That's not too bad."

"Well, a little more than that for people who can't drive or care to actually follow the speed limit," Jack admitted. "But we're not worryin' about that. Things we are worryin' about? You. Symptoms. Start listing 'em."

"I don't really know, Jack." Mac shook his head. "It's kinda hard to tell if something's actually wrong or… or if I'm just freaking out."

"Well, I need you to try." Jack insisted. "Cause if there's even a chance of you not being conscious when we make it to the hospital I'm gonna need to know what to tell them. Start talking."

Mac sighed. "Okay um, chest is tight, like, can't take a deep breath, tight. And doesn't seem to be getting any better. Head's pounding. Little dizzy, lightheaded, whatever you want to call it." He held out the hand closest to Jack and the older man pulled his eyes away from the winding road he was flying down to stare at the slightly trembling fingers. "Kinda shaky."

Jack nodded, mentally repeating the list, as he reached behind him and opened the cooler in the floorboard of the backseat, grabbing a water bottle. "Here." He said, reaching it to Mac only to snatch it away before the blonde's fingers could wrap around it. "Wait. Any chance this could make things worse?"

"Shouldn't." Mac decided after a pause. "Not sure it'll stay down though."

"And you just forgot to mention you were feeling nauseous?" Jack asked, grip tightening and causing the plastic bottle to crinkle loudly in the quiet car.

"I didn't mention it because I think it's a combination of stress and your questionable driving, not the toxin." Mac said, taking the bottle from his partner's hand and twisting off the lid.

"Alright, then drink that. All of it." Jack instructed. "Worst case scenario, you throw it back up. Best case, it flushes some of that crap out of your system. Either way, it'll make it easier for 'em to tap a vein when they turn you into a pincushion at the hospital."

The ride was silent, with Mac slowly draining the water bottle and Jack carefully guiding the car through the winding road, until the phone Jack had tossed on the dash began ringing.

Matty's voice filled the car as soon as Jack clicked the call onto speaker. "What did you get into now, Dalton?"

"That goon you sent us to spy on made us, chased us out of the woods," Jack explained. "We made it back to the car but he tagged Mac with some kind of poison dart."

"Poison?" Riley asked, joining in the conversation.

"How are you feeling now, Mac?" Matty asked, all irritation at her day being interrupted by what should have been a simple mission going south, forgotten.

"All things considered, I'm alright." Mac answered and while his words were encouraging, Jack couldn't help but notice that his voice sounded weaker.

"Okay, well if you safely made it to exfil and Riley got you headed towards the nearest hospital I'm not sure what else I can do from here." Matty continued.

"You call the hospital, tell them to get their best team together cause your best team's coming in." Jack began.

"Mac, any idea what the poison is?" She asked.

"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" Mac muttered under his breath.

Upon seeing his frustration, Jack stepped in. "Not yet. But we have the dart, so I need techs ready to run analysis on any trace, alright?"

"Consider it done," Matty assured. "Anything else?"

"I want a private room with a posted guard. I don't think we're being followed but I'm not ruling out the possibility of it." Jack requested. The chance of the man following them to finish the job wasn't exactly high on his list of problems at the moment but it was definitely on his radar. "And you let them know that I'm to have full access to Mac at all times, visiting hours and restricted areas be damned. And for them to share any and all medical information with me and only me. US hospitals are strict about that and if you want that fancy covert agency you're running to stay covert I need them to answer any questions without them worryin' about why our last names don't match."

"How far away are you?" She asked. "I'll have them ready and waiting."

"Under twenty," Jack calculated, glancing away from the roads to check the time. "Thanks, Matty. I'll keep you updated." And he ended the call, all his attention alternating between Mac and the road between them and the promised medical attention. "Symptom update, go."

"It's definitely something that affects the pulmonary system." Mac decided, absentmindedly rubbing at his chest.

"You having a hard time breathing?" Jack asked, trying to keep his panic internally contained.

"Not exactly," Mac sighed. "More like I just have to think about it, making my lungs work, it's not coming as naturally as it should."

"What else?"

"Headache's getting worse." He admitted, knowing that now was not the time to hide information from his partner. "Everything's kinda spinning and a little blurry. And it looks like we're on a four-lane road instead of two."

"So we're adding double vision to the list," Jack confirmed. "Awesome upgrade."

"Yeah, there's two Jack's beside me trying not to completely lose their cool now instead of one now." Mac joked halfheartedly.

The easiness of their typical banter did loosen the knot in Jack's stomach, just a bit. "How's the tremor?"

Mac held out his hand again, and the shaking was much more noticeable. "Still going strong. But I mean, all of this could just be caused by low oxygen levels so I think that's our main worry."

Jack nodded solemnly and reached out, wrapping his own hand around Mac's wrist, two fingers coming to rest at the desired point. "Pulse feels a little slow."

"Again, low oxygen." Mac said, having already noticed the decreasing quality of cardiac function.

"Well, whatever this is," Jack said, giving Mac's wrist a comforting squeeze before letting go and pointing to the dart still sitting harmlessly in the cupholder. "It's somethin' totally different than the last time you were poisoned by some psycho. What was it that Murdoc gave you again?"

"Nightshade. Or some variation of it." Mac answered automatically.

"Yeah." Jack snapped his fingers at the familiar name. "That. Whatever it is this time 'round at least you're still, you, ya know? Brain's workin', just maybe not at full speed. That's better than the drugged to the gills loopy you were then."

"Yeah," Mac agreed. "Hell of a hangover."

The winding road was slowly beginning to turn into a more residential area, houses flying past the darkly tinted windows instead of miles of endless forest and the occasional off-road. "Welcome to civilization," Jack announced, staring enviously at the blur of happy families sitting down to dinner behind picture windows, not having to worry about the potentially dying kid in their passenger seat.

"Good." Mac wheezed and when Jack looked over at him he could see the obvious effort each breath was taking on the younger man. "This is getting less... fun... real quick."

"Alright, just hang in there for me," Jack said, somehow managing to keep the panic out of his voice. "We're almost there, okay? Just a few more minutes till we make it into town and the hospital's right there. They'll get you all fixed up, I just need you to keep breathing." He placed a hand on Mac's shoulder and Mac's hand automatically wrapped itself around his forearm, grip frantic and weak. "Just keep breathing for me."

Jack kept up a string of pointless rambling as he maneuvered their car through the streets, past shops and businesses closing for the night, nestled among softly glowing lanterns. They flew into downtown, where newer office buildings towered over the road when Mac's grip on Jack's arm faltered. "Two minutes, Mac," Jack promised. "Just give me two more minutes and we'll be there."

"Jack?" Mac wheezed.

"I'm right here, pal," Jack assured, moving his hand securely to the back of Mac's neck, scrambling to offer any comfort he could. "I'm right here and you're gonna be just fine."

"Don't be mad…" Mac began and Jack found himself wincing at the hoarseness of the words. "But I think I'm going to pass out now." And his hand dropped limply into his lap as he lost consciousness.

Jack cursed, the car swerving slightly as he scrambled to find the faint pulse in Mac's neck, before removing his hand completely and focusing entirely on getting to the hospital, blatantly ignoring any traffic lights or stop signs in his way. He spun the car to a stop just outside the small but well-maintained hospital doors, screaming for help before he was even out of the vehicle. Matty, true to her word, had an attendant waiting who rushed out the door with a wheelchair, followed quickly by a young woman around Mac's age with a sterilized plastic bag that looked like it belonged in a crime scene clean-up kit to collect the dart.

He helped get Mac's still unconscious form situated in the wheelchair and jogged behind it as Mac was pushed through the nearly empty halls. He only stopped when a woman in scrubs stepped in front of him, preventing him from following his partner through the swinging doors he had just entered. "Agent Dalton, I'm guessing?" She asked, the use of his name causing him to pause. "Your supervisor called ahead of your arrival. Matilda Webber, I believe her name was? She said to assure you that your requests had been met. If you will have a seat in our waiting room over here," She said, gently taking his arm and leading him towards a small waiting room, empty and decorated in various shades of mint green. "I will go check on your partner and come find you as soon as I have any new information, alright?"

It was almost two hours later that Jack found himself outside of Mac's hospital room. "Knock knock!" He called as he opened the door, taking a second to breathe a sigh of relief when he saw Mac sitting up in bed smiling at him. If it weren't for the hospital gown and nasal cannula it would have looked like nothing was wrong and the past few hours hadn't been some of the scariest of Jack's life.

"You're lookin' way better." He said, grabbing a chair and swinging it around to Mac's bedside, sitting in it backward with his crossed arms resting on the back. "Less, ya know, corpse-like."

"Yeah," Mac agreed, feeling well enough to attempt to press his luck. "I'd feel even better if they would let me get out of here."

"Hey, they said we could leave in the morning. Considering you almost died, only being stuck here for twelve hours is them being generous." Jack reminded him. "Let's get your oxygen levels back to normal before we talk about breakin' out, okay?"

"Sounds like a plan." Mac sighed, resigning himself to being stuck in the hospital overnight. "Hey man, I need to thank you, for everything back there."

"Naw," Jack brushed him off. "The docs did all the work, savin' your ass. I just got ya here."

"You and your crazy stunt-man driving cut what should have been an hour and a half drive down to under thirty minutes," Mac said. "I asked the doctor. He said I wouldn't have made it if you hadn't."

"You're not supposed to be worryin'," Jack admonished. "He shouldn't have ever told you that. I just did my job."

"All while somehow managing to keep me from being completely terrified," Mac added. "I mean, I know you. You were freaked. You had to be. But I remember most of that car ride and I swear I don't think you lost your cool once."

Jack laughed. "Trust me dude, you scared the bejesus out of me. But keepin' it together so you wouldn't freak out more? Again, just part of my job."

"I don't remember seeing that in the job description when we signed up for this gig," Mac said. "But I'm really glad for your particular brand of overprotectiveness this time around. Seriously, thanks."

"I'm your overwatch. My job is makin' sure you get home in one piece." Jack reminded him. "Same today as it has been since that first day back in the sandbox."

"Yeah," Mac smiled. "You know you're not very good at letting people thank you for saving their life."

"Well your welcome, I guess, but seriously, putting you first? That comes natural as breathing for me." Jack said.

"Breathing is pretty important." Mac joked. "Had to figure that one out the hard way."

"So are you," Jack said. "Seriously, I mean that Mac, You're important. So whatever I can do to keep you safe, to keep you here, doin' the magic that you do? I'll do without ever questioning it, in my job description or not."

"Sometimes I wonder if there's any way I'd still be here if you weren't always watching my back." Mac admitted.

"Well lucky for us we won't ever have to find out," Jack promised. "Cause I ain't goin' nowhere."

**So that's how things are going in my headcanon… Thanks for reading and I hope you liked it! **


End file.
